Date:05/01/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/01/05/stories/2008010556571300.htm

National

Militants hamper photo rolls work

Iboyaima Laithangbam

IMPHAL: Although Chief Election Commissioner N. Gopalaswami has instructed all States to ready photo electoral rolls by November this year, Manipur may not be able to complete them.

Election Department officials said militants had been obstructing the process for issuing photo identity cards and preparing the photo electoral rolls.

From the very beginning, the valley militants had been obstructing the official work. Digital cameras were snatched away and photo identity cards collected and burnt in public places. They feel that if the voters are issued photo identity cards, the police and security personnel would easily single them out.

This time the tribal militants prevented the officials from taking photographs in the mountains and other tribal villages in valley areas. The officials and the cameramen were told not to come back.

A top ranking police officer told The Hindu that the tribal militants were not following the footsteps of the valley militants. He said that there was a furore over the fabricated census report of 2001. Representatives of all political parties had been meeting the Central leaders and Delimitation Commission Chairman Kuldip Singh with the plea not to reorganise the constituencies in Manipur on the basis of the 2001 census.